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Resistance 3: Campaign Tour and Multiplayer Report

Earth’s cities lie silent. Mankind teeters on the brink of extinction. The Chimera have won. Six years after the Chimera invaded in Resistance: Fall of Man, Resistance 3 depicts a bleak world where the survivors have laid down their weapons and curled into seclusion to await the inevitable.

One such survivor is Joseph Capelli, last seen (spoiler!) executing series frontman Nathan Hale at the conclusion of Resistance 2. With Resistance 3’s narrative focus shifting from military might to hometown heroism, the gaunt-looking Capelli stands in stark contrast to Resistance 2’s square-jawed super soldier. Having abandoned the fight to be with his wife and child, Capelli holes up in rural Oklahoma to evade Chimeran raiders and scavenge for ever-dwindling supplies. A chance visit by xenobiologist Dr. Fyodor Malikov reveals a desperate plan to destroy the Chimera in New York City, sparking a road trip through an American heartland warped by the Chimera’s corrosive influence.

Enemy Mine

Resistance 3’s campaign combat emphasizes hit-and-run guerrilla tactics amidst complex, nonlinear environments. I watched a scenario set on the decidedly unpleasant Mt. Pleasant, where Capelli scrambles to evade his pursuers in the woodlands of rural Pennsylvania. Mt. Pleasant’s deep blue hues and oppressive drizzle conceal unseen threats: Invisible Chimeran snipers. This sniper scenario serves as a handy demonstration of Resistance 3’s new artificial intelligence system, which grants the Chimera more predatory behavior and the ability to accept different “jobs” — offense, defense, scouting and more. The result are action sequences that play out in very different ways depending on the player’s tactics.

Mt. Pleasant’s stark atmosphere and stealthy shootouts are a radical departure from the opening act set in Haven, Oklahoma, which showcases a full Chimera assault amidst dramatic hurricane-strength winds. Later in the game, Capelli takes a slow, suspenseful boat ride down a flooded Mississippi River en route to St. Louis. A cursory examination of Resistance 3’s varied locales proves that the ever-industrious Chimera haven’t wasted any time settling into their new home. Unearthly Chimeran flora, such as explosive “blast roots,” flourish in the frigid climate produced by the Chimera’s terraforming technology. Physically, the Chimera continue to evolve with new strains such as nimble Longlegs and the hulking Brawler. The titanic arachnoid Widowmaker from Resistance: Fall of Man also makes its long-awaited return. Capelli’s journey will not be an easy one.

Tools of Destruction

Luckily, Capelli will be packing a full arsenal of human and Chimera firearms to help even the odds. To the delight of series fans, Resistance 3 will once again allow you to carry more than two weapons at a time via a quick-access weapon wheel. What’s more, those weapons are feeling weightier and deadlier than in any of the previous games. “We rebuilt all of the guns, everything from the audio effects to the feel of the iron sights,” lead designer Drew Murray says. It shows. The Carbine boasts increased damage and range but a slightly lower rate of fire; the Marksman rifle can deploy a micro-turret to provide cover fire; the Bulleye rips enemies apart with its blistering volley of projectiles. What’s more, you can unlock a series of upgrades that will improve the weapon’s effectiveness in multiple ways, from incendiary shells for the Rossmore shotgun to cluster bombs for the Magnum. You’ll earn progress toward your weapon’s next upgrade with repeated use, so it may pay to specialize.

In playing Resistance 3’s campaign, I was most struck by the detail and diversity of the environments, the power of the redesigned weapons, and the variety in game pacing. I also liked how Capelli’s hands reached out to physically interact with props, such as tugging open a stubborn door or bludgeoning an enemy during a melee struggle. I’m also curious to experience the game in 3D using PlayStation Move.

Survival of the Fittest

Resistance 3’s eight-on-eight multiplayer mode extends the battle to an international stage, with human and Chimera teams battling in exotic locales from Columbia to The Republic of Chad in Africa. I played several rounds of team deathmatch (the final game will include objective-based modes as well) and found that the intimate maps and frenzied yet strategic shootouts lean closer to the feel of the original game. Character progression and customization have been supercharged with abilities that can turn the tables during a heated match. Support abilities such as Ammo Beacon and Lightning Shield will aid your teammates, while tactical abilities such as Dash and Doppelganger can help you outmaneuver opponents. You can also select a personal attribute and combat attribute to further customize your dream multiplayer warrior, whether that means giving birth to vicious Leapers upon death or simply boasting better hip-fire accuracy. And because Resistance 3 doesn’t lock players into cookie-cutter multiplayer classes, custom hybrid characters (sniper-medic, anybody?) are absolutely viable choices. Killstreak bonuses provide extra incentive, dishing out rewards such as high-powered grenade launchers for the humans and optical camouflage for the Chimera.

Resistance 3’s multiplayer beta will go live on PS3 later this year (though if you bought a specially marked copy of SOCOM 4, you’re already ahead of the game). Have questions about the new guerrilla-style combat, the upgraded arsenal or the feel of the controls? Leave them in the comments and I’ll add more details.

man, i love the resistance series. Fall of man had this feeling like man could push back the brink of destruction. the controls needed to be more refined but it was great. Resistance 2 kinda felt lackin and with a traditional FPS feel. However every fight felt like the last fight and the endin was a great twist. i miss the health system of the first game though. it feels to much a CoD ripoff with out it. you should do that insomniac, bring back the health system. also i LOVE the ratchet series 2.

Love Resistance! I cant wait! It has replaced Timesplitters as my favorite FPS when I got my PS3 since I got it with Fall of Man. Still playing Resistance 2 to get my resistance fix till Resistance 3 comes out. Working on getting my last trophy towards my platinum. Those 10,000 kills are hard to come by these days in ranked mode. Any Ideas on achieving this quicker? Please help :(

Sid is the weapons layout the same size or can you get more weapons then in R2, can you choose a class for your character like in mass effect for the storyline, Is the campain longer or about the same, and is this game going to really be based on the online play or more with the storyline?

Dear Sony.I have been wondering if the store will be back up by the 27th of may because i leave for hawaii for the summer on june 4th and i want to be able to redownload and purchase some previous content i have downloaded before,and i have 2 50$ psn cards i want to redeem so a response to this would be greatly appreciated.

and im guessing modern warfare 3 will be announced @ e3 heard some great things about that game.sledgehammer and raven i think will surely put more time and work on this than any other previous cod.i myself all i play is cod and marvel vs capcom 3..not really interested in any other games.and the idea of a mmorpg sounds pretty cool cant wait for mw3!!!!!!!!!!!!

Looks excellent! Detailing on weapons is improved, enjoy the details in the environment, but if i have to play 2 hours of this game on a 200 sq foot boat… especially in coop… I hope there are more explorable terrestrial environments as opposed to forced boat rides. Still give the preview a 8.5/10!!!

i think its shoite that the redeem codes are tied to the ps store in the first place! surely it would be easier and perhaps safer to keep a separate “till” for codes …but i’m just blowing off some steam as i bought dcuo the other day without realising that i need the store up and running to play it!!:(…as for resistance3…i know a lot of fps fans that hate the series but also some that play ONLY resistance as their main shooter fix so it’s a matter of preferance really eh:)..i pesonally LOVE the games!.yes 2 lost something on fom but it also had some interesting points! im sure those that played it through would be able to give their own views on the good and bad(and most certainly will) but they are entitled to it so why bother berating them for their opinion?..i acn see from the vid that i for one will most likely enjoy this offering to the series:)…incidently,retribution fo rthe psp was also excellent!:) loved the ps3 connectability gimmic!:)

@35
1.) Spell correctly, that’ll probably help in conveying questions
2.) Buy an Xbox if you don’t have the patience to wait, and
3.) Sony, this game looks like a stand-alone from most single-player campaigns I’ve seen in a lot of games… Let us know when/if there will be a beta for this game, thanks.

How do you think this game would be if you could play as the chimera in the story mode by keeping hale alive instead of eliminating him at the end of R2. And having the Human and Chimera campaigns meet at the end.

Looks really good. I like how they’ve gone from being obsessed with Halo, and going back to the resistance feeling that the second game forgot about. Does the story feel like the first one aesthetically? It really seems like its going to return to form.

I can’t wait!!! When the PS3 first came out I bought it on the first week and the game that I picked up first was Resistence Fall of Man! Resistence 2 has such a GREAT Online Co Op!!! Its so fun! I guaranteed to get a special edition of Resistence 3 if there is one. This game should represent PS3 in any way. RESISTENCE ROCKS!!!

I finally got into the first Resistance last November and was hooked right away. I recently got the sequel and I’m loving it. This one has me so psyched that when a friend said he’d never played any of it, I bought him the first so I can have a local friend to share the excitement with (plus, he’d gotten me hooked on Killzone so I owed him one, lol). His words: f*@king awesome! So yeah, there’s another fan for ya, lol.

I personally cannot wait for this game! FoM and 2 are on the top of my list for my favorite FPS’s and I honestly think the third one will be #1. I also like the 16 player match system far more than the 60 player. Looking back, I remember all of the hedgehog chaos going on.. and LOVED IT, but I can see why you guys shrunk it to 16, and I know I will enjoy it no matter what so it is a WIN/WIN for me! :D And don’t let me get started with the visuals being able to compare to some PC FPS’s on max settings as of now… Oh wait.. I just did.. HAHA. XD

Anyway, can’t wait to play this! :D Loved both R1 & R2. Story was great. R2 was my favorite because of the co-op features (to bad there was no co-op campaign). Hopefully R3 will give me the same expierence :D